You could try over-the-counter allergy meds to see if that is enough to ease the symptoms, and see if the child gets over the reaction. I developed a pretty bad allergy to cats when I was younger. Stayed away from them for years, but then I spent some time at a friend’s house who had a cat, and he gave me some Claritin that worked wonders. After having spent some time around that cat, with the help of antihistamines, I have never had much of a reaction to any others.

It could go either way though. Often, exposure just makes allergies worse, but it can also build up a resistance. I think the key might be that the exposure needs to be sporadic, like allergists do when they treat allergies by exposing people to small doses occasionally. So, maybe keep the dog outside the house and only allow the child to play with it once in a while, to see if that helps?

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